Extra Help
by Seoid
Summary: Broots gets a surprise from Jarod.
1. Part Un

This was my very first fic, so its not as good as the others. I hadn't seen too much of the Pretender. Also, this is a bit AU because I was under the impression Kyle and Jarod were older when Anne died. (I hadn't seen the episode yet, just read about it.)  
  
  
Extra Help  
  
Jarod walked to the bus stop, reading a newspaper article. He was on his way to New Jersey, but right now he was stuck in Maryland.   
  
Sitting down on a bench, he shot back up when it moved. A girl with tousled brown hair sat up, wrapped in a blanket.  
  
"Sorry, I didn't see you there," Jarod apologized. "My name is Jarod. May I share this bench?"  
  
"Sure. I'm AnaLeece." The girl swung her legs off, giving him room. She looked no more than 12. He wondered where her family was.  
  
"Why are you out here all by yourself?"  
  
" I can't go home, and this is the best place to sleep. Do you have a last name, Jarod?"  
  
"None that I can tell you."  
  
"Well I'm afraid I must leave. Bye!" AnaLeece ran down the street. Jarod followed her as she slowed to a stop in front of a hotel. He listened to her register in as Anne Russell. He walked up to the counter.  
  
"I was wondering if my daughter has been here," he asked the clerk.   
  
"She often runs off when we have a disagreement, and she often talks about this hotel."  
  
"What was her name, sir?"  
  
"Anne Russell. I'm Bill Russell."  
  
"I just checked in an Anne Russell. She said her father would be here shortly. Your room number is 27, and she forgot the key. Here you are Mr. Russell." Jarod thanked the clerk and went looking for her room. He found the girl standing outside her door, smiling sheepishly. Without a word, Jarod put the key into the lock and opened the door. They both entered, sitting on a couch.  
  
"You shouldn't have come here, you know. You'll get in trouble," AnaLeece scolded.  
  
"Tell me, AnaLeece, why can't you go home?"  
  
"Rainy might hurt me. He has searchers out."  
  
"And who is Rainy?" Jarod asked, fearing the answer.  
  
"My grandfather, silly. You might not want to stay here. If they catch me, they will definitely catch you."  
  
"You know who I am?"  
  
"You're Jarod. I've only read about you, never seen an actual photo or DSA." She took out some tightly folded papers. "I was looking for a for some physical description I might have missed. When you followed me, I was sure you were the Jarod. You are, aren't you?"  
  
"Yes. And I'm not leaving you. How did you manage to get these?" He gestured to her papers.  
  
" I was looking around his study. I'm not supposed to go in there. I found all this data on the Pretender project. I took as much as I could."  
  
"Why were you with Raines?" That was what Jarod still did not get.  
  
"My mother, Anne, died as soon as I was born. Rainy won't go into how. I think she was the only person he actually cared for. After Edna disappeared, he was the only person left."  
"I had no idea Raines had a granddaughter. Where is your father?"  
  
"See, I didn't know who he was until I went through the red files. There is a guy named Kyle. I haven't finished his file yet, but Raines used Anne and Kyle to create a lab baby…me. What's the matter Jarod? Jarod?" AnaLeece was worried when he did not answer her.  
  
"Ana, you realize what this means?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"You are my niece! Kyle was my brother. I just found out three years ago, but your father and I are related. But I don't understand. Why create you? I mean, I'm happy you're here, but Raines isn't known for his love of kids."  
  
"That's what I was wondering. So one time Rainy was trying to teach me math and he got frustrated. He mumbled something about me being too dumb. When he left I snuck into his study and found out about why I was made. He wanted another pretender. And if it were Anne's child, he would have full say in what happened to me. I didn't know what a pretender was, so I looked further. That's when I found all these files and papers. Rainy wasn't too happy with me, though, because I didn't end up having the Pretender gene. He tried for a long time, trying to get me to overcome it.  
"Jarod, may I call you Uncle? I've never had anyone but my grandparents." Jarod reached for her and drew them into a hug.  
  
"I was hoping you'd ask." That night Jarod told AnaLeece all about Kyle and Edna. By morning Jarod had a plan for her.  
********  
They were in Delaware once again, and AnaLeece was nervous. What if he didn't want her?  
  
"Now remember what I told you," Jarod reminded, breaking through her thoughts. "Broots has a soft spot for kids and he's incredibly intimidated by strong women. Just play the part." AnaLeece nodded, and set off to the neighborhood.  
  
"Yes?" Broots asked into the phone.  
"Mr. Broots," the all too familiar voice said. "I have sent a present for you. She'll be at your door at about, oh, now." Jarod hung up as Broots heard the doorbell ring. He opened the door, surprised to see a young girl standing on his doorstep swinging a DSA around her finger.  
  
"Hello, Mr. Broots. I heard you're having some child-care problems," she greeted. Broots stammered and she invited herself in.  
********  
  
Four months later  
  
"Hello, Broots residence," a feminine voice answered. Miss Parker didn't recognize it, but went on anyway.  
  
"Hello Debbie. I need to speak to your father."  
  
"Oh, I'm not Debbie, but I'll get him." Miss Parker heard a softly yelled, 'Broots!' on the other end.  
  
"Y-yes, Miss Parker?"  
  
"Broots, who was that?" she snapped.  
  
"My daughter. Are you calling because of the memo I sent you?"  
  
"Yes Broots, but what do you mean your daughter?"  
  
"Just that. Now come over, I have some DSA's to show you."  
  
"Yes, but I-" Miss Parker was stopped when he hung up. "Sydney!" she screeched. "Broots just hung up on me! And did you know he has another daughter?" Sydney just shook his head. This certainly was going to be interesting.  
  
"Anne, would you get that?" Broots yelled when he heard the knock on the door.  
  
"Sure thing, Daddy," she replied sarcastically. Opening the door, she greeted the visitors, "Hello, I'm assuming you're Sydney and Miss Parker. Won't you come in?" Sydney walked through the entryway while Miss Parker was left standing outside..  
  
"Hello, and you are…?"  
"Anne. I'm Broots' daughter. Miss Parker, are you going to come in? It's a bit drafty and Debbie has a small cold already." Miss Parker glared at the pre-teen and walked in as Broots entered the living room.  
  
"Ah, Sydney, Miss Parker, I see you've met my daughter, Anne Russell. Well, she needed a home. And yes, Anne, we are going to get to the DSA." He inserted the disc and they were shown an image of Raines as 'Dr. Billy'. He explained about breeding Kyle and his daughter. At the end of the DSA, the screen went fuzzy and Broots snapped it off.  
  
"What happened to the egg?" Sydney guessed it was now Anne Broots.  
  
"The baby died with Anne. Her body was too damaged to save it."   
  
Sydney nodded, accepting Broots' lie. He must have had his reasons. Miss Parker didn't see what the big deal was.  
  
"Why did you contact us?"  
  
"I didn't want to keep anything from you," Broots said sheepishly.  
  
"You call this not hiding something from us?" Miss Parker asked angrily.  
  
"I'm sure Broots had more important things on his mind," Sydney told her. He had some calls to make, and lead her out the door. "I'm sure you'll contact us if you find anything?" Broots nodded, hoping they would leave soon. Just then Debbie ran out in her pajamas.  
  
"Anne, will you read to me?"  
  
"Sure, sweets." Anne lead her to the girls' room, while Sydney and Miss Parker left, not wanting to intrude on their bedtime.  
  
"Did I do good, Leecy?" Debbie asked.  
  
"You did great. Right on cue! Now, do you want that story or not?"  
Debbie jumped up and down, picking out her favorite story, 'Gemma and the Chicks'.  
  
Broots smiled as he watched AnaLeece and Debbie read together. He knew she had already been made a part of the family. He went to his computer, writing to Jarod to tell him how his niece was doing.  
  
Meanwhile Sydney was going through his files. He finally found the entry he wanted. 'Jarod is now believing his last name is Russell. I do not have the authority to find out if this is true or not.' He counted on his fingers, discovering Anne's baby would have been born before the car accident. He was startled out of his thoughts when the phone rang.  
  
"This is Sydney," he answered.  
  
"I hope you've met the gift," Jarod's unmistakable voice answered.  
  
"Yes, Jarod, wherever did you find her? Raines, perhaps?"  
  
"No, actually, Maryland. Do you like her?"  
  
"Of course. I must ask, is she really your niece?"  
  
"Yes, at least from what I know."  
  
"May I know her name?"  
  
"AnaLeece. Sydney, you sound so excited. It's just a little girl."  
  
"I know, but I worry about Broots. We have a new project coming up and I don't want him to be stressed."  
  
"Don't worry. He'll be fine. That new project has already been taken care of." Sydney waited for him to hang up and went back to reading. The new project involved a behavior expert. She would help them use Angelo. He hoped things would settle down soon.  
  
  
  
  
  
End. The Sequel is in Buffy the Vampire Slayer Crossovers, if anyone is interested.  
  
  



	2. Part Deux

  
PART 2  
  
"So Syd, just what does Little Red Riding Hood have planned for Cousin It?" Sydney just shook his head and pointed. Miss Parker turned around, to see a very amused Willow.  
  
"Well Parker, I need to be alone with him for a while, see how he acts without anyone else. I'm sure he's going to need a lot of work after being here."  
  
"He is fine here, Miss Rosenburg." Willow whirled around to see an extremely old man carrying an oxygen tank. "Angelo is mine. We do not need you. You will not discover anything I don't already know. You may as well leave."   
  
"Am I correct in assuming you are Raines? First off, I know I am needed here, otherwise I wouldn't have been called. Also, I'm sure my goals are more…team-oriented rather than self-profitable." She turned back to Sydney, dismissing Raines like a minion. He sputtered a bit, but finally left.  
  
"Sydney, I was hoping you'd know of a place for me to stay. A hotel perhaps? One that would house myself and my associate?"  
  
" I can't say that there are any close by. And even if there were, it would undoubtedly be under surveillance around the clock. Why don't you stay with me?"  
  
"That would be great, but do you have enough room?"  
  
Sydney smiled, a hint of evil in it. "No, I guess not. But Broots does!"  
  
"I-I guess you could stay with my daughters and me, Miss Rosenburg," he offered.  
  
"Please call me Willow. And I would love that, but are you sure you can handle guests right now?"  
  
"We'll be fine," Broots assured her.  
  
********  
  
"Spike, I want you to be a perfect gentlemen," Willow reminded him as they were leaving the blackened-out car.  
  
"Aren't I always, Red?"  
  
"Not from what I've seen," she snapped back.  
  
"Ah, but you haven't seen all of me," Spike winked at her. Willow rolled her eyes at his innuendo and knocked softly on Broots' door. A girl of about twelve opened the door.  
  
"Are you Miss Rosenburg?" the girl asked. Willow nodded, and smiled warmly at her.  
  
"This is Spike, we're going to be staying with you for the next couple of weeks."  
  
"Oh, please come in," she asked. Spike cocked his head at her and took her hand, bringing it to his lips.  
  
"Pleasure to meet you, miss…?"  
  
"Anne!" Anne said, turning a bright shade of pink. She slowly took her hand away from the blonde and dashed back inside.  
  
"Broots! You're people are here!" Broots emerged from the hallway, and invited the two in.  
  
"Willow, I see you've met my daughter, Anne. Why don't you go to the kitchen, and we'll make you some coffee or something," the young man suggested. Spike grinned toothily, and followed Willow. He turned in time to see a smaller girl run up to him, holding her Barbie.  
  
"Hi, what is your name?" She asked. She was fiddling with his leather duster, which would normally make him growl, but now he just saw it as cute. Willow must be making him soft.  
  
"Spike. Do you like my coat?" The little girl nodded. "Are you going to tell me your name?"  
  
"Only if you come see my coat!" she giggled and raced off to her bedroom. Without making a sound, he ran off after her. Broots' head whipped around to see the blonde man follow his daughter.  
  
"Will he be all right?" he asked Willow.  
  
"Of course. He loves kids, just doesn't show it. I'm surprised he didn't yell at her, though.   
He doesn't let anyone touch his coat."  
"Debbie's special," he answered, a proud look on his face.  
  
"Is that her name? May I ask about her mother?" Willow already knew from Jarod, but was curious of how Broots would explain it.  
  
"Her mother and I divorced, but I won custody of her through some anonymous information."   
  
"And your other?"  
  
"She doesn't know her mother," he admitted. "I adopted her when she visited. Actually, she was found on the streets."  
  
"Who was?" Spike asked, walking in the room. "Excuse me, I'm assuming you're Mr. Broots." Willow had to smother a grin. He just sounded so…un-Spike.  
  
"Ju-just Broots. We were talking about my daughters."  
  
"I met them. Quite beauties, aren't they?" All Broots could do was nod. Maybe you two can tell me, who is this illustrious 'Miss Parker'?" Willow rolled her eyes, and Broots grinned. Debbie had told everyone she met about Miss Parker. Of course, Parker denied even looking at the girl.  
  
"She will be working with me," Willow answered. "Don't get any ideas, Spike. She's nothing like Harmony or Dru."  
  
"Please. Harm was nothing like Dru." Broots looked to Willow, who just shrugged. "Red, do you have my mug? I'm a bit thirsty." Willow nodded, and stood up to retrieve it from her bags.  
"Spike, I have drinks here, why don't I serve you some?"  
"I like special stuff, B. Don't think you have any." They were quieted when Willow re-entered the room.  
  
"Broots, what can you tell me about Angelo?" Willow was anxious to know how the savant acted.  
  
"He's basically a high-level empath. He can become the person he wishes, or to be more exact, who we wish."  
  
"What if he doesn't know the person?"  
  
"Didn't tell you much, did they?" Broots was worried. He could get in trouble for revealing information, but she needed to know if she was to help. "When we give him something that belonged to the person, he feels who they are." He watched as Spike reached down and pulled something out of his bag.  
  
"Ya mean something of this sort?" The blonde held up a lab coat.  
  
"Exactly. He would feel much the same of what the person wearing that was." Spike grinned.  
  
"Perfect. Well, if its all okay with you I'd like to head to me room." Broots stuttered a bit, and pointed to the bedroom door.  
  
"I'm a bit tired, too Broots. Where am I sleeping?" She could see him blush.  
  
"I, uh, don't have much of a home. I need you to sleep with Anne." Willow nodded and grinned.  
  
"I always wanted a sister. At home it was just me and my friends. Not much for girl talk."  
  
"Just don't stay up to late," Broots joked. Willow again nodded and went off to find her bed.  
  
"Anne?" She called out.  
  
"I'm over here," a voice answered, and the lights were flipped on. "Sorry, I didn't know when you were coming." AnnaLeece was still nervous around people from the Centre, even though Broots had told her Willow was new.  
  
"So," Willow started, "Have a secret, Leecy?" AnnaLeece stared at her.  
  
"You know-" Willow nodded.  
"I met Jarod about a month ago. He was working with my boss."  
  
"And Spike?"  
  
"My boss' childe. Don't ask. Anyway, I'm here to help him. Jarod recommended I stay with Broots."  
  
"I never would have guessed. So why are you here?"  
  
"I need to help Spike. He's…special."  
  
"Special like how?"  
  
"I'll tell you later. Anyway, I think Angelo is the key to helping him. The thing is, I can't tell Spike's 'father' about it, he'd never accept it."  
  
"Okay. But you'll tell me more? I'm really tired." Willow agreed and rolled over.  
  
The next morning Willow, Spike, and Broots all traveled to the Centre in separate cars. When they arrived, Spike left them, needing to sneak in on his own. Willow and Broots had clearance. Together they made their way to Angelo's space. There they found Spike, already talking with Angelo.  
  
"Spike, get away from him!" Willow said. She didn't need Broots finding out the real reason she was here. Spike instantly stepped away from the other man. "Broots, as much as I love your company, I need to be alone with Angelo." She smiled sweetly at him. Broots nodded and left. "Spike, what were you doing? Broots wasn't supposed to see you."  
  
"Sorry, love. I was just makin' friendly talk with the weirdo, here."  
  
"He's not a weirdo, and he's right here! So stop talking like he's not. Anyway, we need to get back to Angelo." Spike took out the lab coat from his bag, and handed it to the savant.   
  
"Angelo, can you tell anything from this coat?" Angelo looked up at her, his gaze glazed over.  
  
"Arrogance, superior…so many animals!"  
  
"What's he doin'?" Spike asked.  
  
"I think how it works is he is feeling what the lab technician felt. Apparently, this one was a bit prejudiced. Angelo, do you know how to remove the chips the scientists implanted?"   
  
Angelo nodded.  
  
"Drugs!"  
  
"Oh great. The idiot's gonna be messin' with my 'ead!"  
  
"Well, you wouldn't be the first," Miss Parker's voice rang out. Both Willow and Spike looked up.  
  
"Miss Parker, I didn't know you would be up here today," Willow said nervously. Spike was having a hard time concentrating. This woman was obviously all about power-something he found very attractive.  
  
"I don't think we've met," he greeted. "I'm Spike, Willow's roommate. You want to go kill something?"  
  
"Love to."  



End file.
